Belfast boxer Ray Close, who drew with Chris Eubank, dies aged 57

Belfast boxer Ray Close has died at the age of 57 after a lengthy battle with illness, Belfast Live reported on 2 October.

Close was born in Belfast in 1969 and grew up in the east of the city. He started boxing as a 10-year-old at Ledley Hall Youth and Boxing Club. He turned professional in 1988 after a decorated amateur career, according to BBC Sport.

His breakthrough came on St Patrick's Day in 1993. That night he won the EBU super-middleweight title, the European championship at 12 stone. The win moved him into world-title contention within weeks.

In May 1993 he faced Chris Eubank in Glasgow. Eubank arrived with 35 wins from 35 professional bouts as the defending WBO super-middleweight champion, the holder of one of the four major world belts. Close held him to a draw over 12 rounds. It was a result few expected.

They met again at King's Hall in Belfast. Eubank won the rematch on a split decision, which means two of the three ringside judges scored the fight for him and one scored it for Close. A third fight between the pair was then discussed.

It never took place. The British Boxing Board of Control, the body that licenses professional boxers in Britain, revoked Close's licence after an MRI scan revealed two lesions on his brain. The ruling removed him from the planned trilogy at a time when he was operating at world level.

Close later obtained a licence in the United States. He won all five of his bouts in Illinois as he rebuilt his career away from home. His last bout was a knockout victory over Larry Willis in June 1997.

He retired with a professional record of 25 victories, three defeats and one draw. That single draw was the first Eubank fight in Glasgow.

In later years Close lived in Bangor. In a 2016 interview with the Belfast Telegraph he looked back on the Eubank fights and on the failed scan that changed his career. He described being at the top of his game when the licence was taken away.

For fans in Belfast, this means the loss of a local fighter who reached the edge of a world title without ever holding one. He did not get the third fight. He is still remembered for pushing an unbeaten champion to the limit.